Mk5-C3C5 Mistral
The Mk5-C3C5 Mistral 'is a Fifth Generation Knightmare Frame design that is developed by the French company and arms developer Avions Marcel Dassault who are notable for producing many different civilian planes and a few combat VTOL designs for the Europia United Armed Forces. Therefore, the Mistral while a bit more mobile and human-like than the regular Mk4-E2E8 Panzer II "Hummel" Knightmares it is still not as good as the Britannian RPI-13 Sutherland and RPI-209 Gloucester. Appearance While the Mistral does sport a more human-like profile then even the Mk4-E2E8 Panzer II "Hummel" it doesn't sport a human-like head and still sports a slight hunch-like profile of the earlier Europian Knight Frame Designs. For a head, it sports a few cockpit-like viewports that are built into the top of the unit's torso. Its arms are also a bit off center making them look a bit weird and not capable. Even with its weird-looking frame the Mistral still looks to be quite an interesting design. For a paint job, they are often deployed in the standard blue and gray colors of the Europia United Armed Forces. However, like the Panzer II Units, they have started to be painted in various different camouflage colors. Design The overall design of the Mk5-C3C5 Mistral is quite different from both the earlier Mk4-E2E8 Panzer II "Hummel" and the Britannian standard RPI-13 Sutherland. While it retains the hunch-like and bulky frame of the other Europian Knightmare Frames it is designed with a more human-like form. The only thing that it doesn't sport is a human-like head like the Britannian Knightmare Frames. Instead, it sports a weird cockpit-like viewport built into the top of the unit's torso as a head with the large cockpit block extending out from the "head". It does sport a similar looking sensor-head to that of the Panzer II "Hummel" next to its cockpit. While its arms are off-center from the torso making the arms look almost like those of a monkey, but are still fully capable of holding and using handheld weapons which does set it apart from the Panzer Series. For weapons, the Mistral is equipped with a few fixed weapons including a "nose" mounted MG18 12.7 Machine Gun the same weapon often found on a coaxial mount of many Europian armor vehicles. It also sports a pair of shoulder-mounted RTG10 Three-Tube Missile Launchers which are quite capable of destroying an enemy knightmare with one missile from these launchers. Then for a close-combat weapon, it can use the small single torso-mounted SaH198 Slash Harken or the optional KaH200 Anti-Armor Knife. The main weapon for the Mistral is often the MG/K-10 25mm Assault Rifle first developed for the cloned Mk5-R13P2 Silberritter or the French produced T35M820 20mm Compact Assault Rifle. Though it can be equipped with a variety of different secondary weapons including an anti-Knightmare bazooka and a heavy assault rifle. Overall, while the Mistral looks to be quite weird when compared to the Sutherland or the Gloucester it is still quite capable of being used to defend the Europia Union from the Britannian invasion. Armaments Fixed Weapons '''MG18 12.7mm Antipersonal Machine Gun ' For anti-infantry and light anti-armor duties, the Mistral is equipped with an MG18 12.7mm machine gun in a turret-mount underneath the front of the torso. This made the weapon just above normal head height which allows the gun to fire down onto approaching enemy infantry. The MG18 is also notable to being used as a coaxial weapon for many armored units of the Europia United Armed Forces. 'RTG10 Three-Tube Missile Launchers ' To combat enemy armor and other knightmare frames the Mistral sports a pair of three-tube missile launchers built into the shoulders of the unit. These missile launchers and the missiles they fire are quite capable of combating enemy armored vehicles and knightmares though it should be mentioned that these launchers are often only used for anti-armor allowing enemy knightmares to be engaged with the Mistral's handheld rifle. 'SaH198 Slash Harken ' A slightly smaller version of the SaH194 Slash Harkens mounted on the Panzer II "Hummel" and its upgraded Panzer IIB "Hummel. This Slash Harken is developed entirely for combating enemy knightmares, as well as, anchoring itself to a building or something like that. It is built directly in the center-torso right below the cockpit. Optional Weapons '''T35M820 20mm Compact Assault Rifle This weapon was developed entirely for the use by the Mistral by French weapon developer Saint-Étienne Arms Manufacturer who manufactures regular infantry weapons for many of the Europian United Armed Forces State Armies. However, while they have plenty experience in creating infantry weapons this is the first time they ever produced a Knightmare-scaled weapon and it shows. For while the weapon does work and everything it is quite underpowered when compared to other Knightmare Assault Rifles. It is for this reason many Mistral pilots prefer the more powerful MG/K-10 Assault Rifle manufactured in Germany and used by the Mk5-R13P2 Silberritter. Even then this weapon is still useful for anti-infantry and light anti-armor duties, therefore, is often equipped as a secondary weapon for the Mistral. MG/K-10 25mm Assault Rifle Originally developed for the Mk5-R13P2 Silberritter by German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall this weapon is basically a direct clone of the KMF-W5A2 Assault Rifle of the Sutherland. Thanks in part to the Mistral purpose-built T35M820 Compact Assault Rifle being under-powered this rifle is often more used by Mistrals spread across Europia and thanks to this Rheinmetall has started further production runs of this rifle just to equip Mistrals with a better weapon. Therefore, this rifle is more often to be equipped by a Mistral during the course of the Second Great War. KaH200 Anti-Armor Knife A purpose-built close-range weapon developed for the use of the Mistral by Dassault that is basically a small Knightmare-sized knife weapon for the use of combating enemy knightmares at close-range. However, due to many Britannian Knightmares often equipped with large lances or swords for close combat, this knife is pretty much useless in direct close combat. Therefore, like the T35M820 Compact Assault Rifle before it is not often used by many Mistral pilots. Even then is often equipped as a back-up or off-hand weapon. KaH166 Anti-Armor Carbon Blade The KaH166 Anti-Armor Carbon Blade had originally been developed for the use by the Mk5-R13P2 Silberritter but was beat out by the far more useful M9 Anti-Knightmare Rapier Blade. The Anti-Armor Carbon Blade would then find new life in being used by the Mistral as its preferred close-combat weapon. This weapon greatly resembles a katar dagger but with a double-ended bow-shaped blade that parallels the grip. The blade is made out of a super strong carbon-based alloy. It can be either stored on the storage rack behind the waist of the Mistral or mounted on one of the leg panels. System Features * KBE-2A Sensor and Radar System * KBE-3E Camera and Sensor System * VdM305 Landspinner Propulsion System Variants Mk5-C8C9 Mistral II The Mistral II would be introduced around the end of the Second Great War and afterward. It would vastly superior over the older Mistral and is far more human-like thanks in part to lessons learned from the development of the original Mistral. After the end of the Second Great War, it has since become the standard Knightmare Frame of the Europia Union Armed Forces replacing the aged Panzer Series and working alongside the new Mk6-P1W2 Heracles, a production version of the prototype Alexander. Mk5-C3C6 Mistral Artillery Type A variant of the regular Mistral that replaces its shoulder-mounted missile launchers with a pair of medium-ranged KwK300 80mm Cannons. These cannons turn the Mistral into a fire-support and artillery use knightmare quite similar to that of the heavier Mk4-E4E9 Panzer II "Wespe", though far more useful. Since while the Mistral Artillery is quite slow and unwieldy it is more mobile then the "Wespe" therefore it is often used in a dedicated support role from behind several regular Mistrals. History Around early 2016 a.t.b the Europia United Armed Forces was starting a new Armament Program to upgrade their forces and as part of said program was the development of a new standard knightmare frame to replace the four-year-old Mk4-E2E8 Panzer II "Hummel" which several people believed to be needed after spending the last few years observing Britannia invading numerous of the smaller nations spread across the world including their former ally the North African Union. However, the belief of many higher-ups inside the Europia United Armed Forces and a few politicians in the Europian government was that their Panzer Series was quite capable of combating the Britannian Sutherland. Much to the horror of several front-line commanders and officers along with a few more sensible figures in the Europia United government. It is this reason that a few of these various companies and independent developers would start their own programs to develop new Knightmares out of their own funds and resources. One such company would be Avions Marcel Dassault, a longtime producer of combat planes and VTOLs for the Europian United Armed Forces. This program would go on to develop the Mk5-C3C5 Mistral which due to the aforementioned higher-ups would be quite delayed in being introduced to the overall larger Europian United Armed Forces as they remain using the Panzer II "Hummel" as their standard Knightmare. Even then, thanks to General Gene Smilas and a few other senior officers of both the Europian Foreign Legion and the EUAF France State Army the Mistral would start to be used by many units inside these larger formations. By the start of the Second Great War and the Britannian invasion of Russia in late 2017 a.t.b much of the France State Army and several other units in other State Armies across the Europia United would start using the Mistral. Other units would use a mix of both Mistrals and Panzer IIs like the 132nd Regimental Combat Team of the German State Army during the Battle of Narva. While a couple other units would start receiving Mistrals to replace destroyed or damaged Panzer IIs. It is partly thanks to the Mistral being rushed to the front lines and a few other notable battles that the Russian Front has started to grind to a halt which saw Britannia opening a second front across the Mediterranean Sea from the conquered North African Union. Overall, the Mistral along with the use of the prototype Mk6-W0X Alexander would help the EU start fully pushing back against the Britannian invasion. Notes and Trivia * The Mk5-C3C5 Mistral is heavily based on the C3-5 Mistral II Arm Slave from ''Full Metal Panic!: Second Raid ''anime series and the ''Full Metal Panic! ''Manga Series. The only difference, of course, having the Mistral being smaller and sporting a large back-mounted cockpit block like many of the Knightmares. * The KaH166 Anti-Armor Carbon Blade is based on the similar weapon used by the MSJ-06II-A Tieren Ground Type Mobile Suit from ''Mobile Suit Gundam 00 ''anime series. Since the Mistral did remind me of the Anf and the other mobile suits from the Human Reform League. Category:Knightmare Frames Category:Divergence Point Knightmares